When it comes to conditioning, it is where I find things the most challenging these days. With circuits, the exercises vary but the amount of work stays within a 500-1000 rep range. Sometimes I take breaks between circuits, sometimes I don't where I just mark it down and proceed to keep going. However; the Interval Workouts are the ones that truly test me.
I do them maybe no more than twice in a week which considering the way I do it, even a fit guy I've met in our Complex Rec Room has said he couldn't do what I do. Doesn't mean I'm better than him, it's a nice compliment but his training is different from mine and he's doing things for a guy his size that is awesome and he's roughly 60 lbs lighter than me. I'm still maintaining size, strength and cardio because of workouts like this and has made me better as time goes on. It's even helping me lean out more little by little. For 30 minutes, I'm kicking my ass but always leaving with some gas left in the tank.
The way I've programed it is simple but not easy. 5 Exercises which includes usually a push, pull, squat and core along with the propeller exercise which targets practically everything and adds the agility and coordination aspect to the workout. Each exercise is 45 seconds of work with 15 seconds rest and will do them a total of 6 rounds which adds up to 30 minutes. I don't count reps, I keep going for as many as I can do, sometimes (especially in later rounds) my hands start to slide away from the knots so I have to readjust which really only takes seconds and get back at it. Some of these exercises can be very hard to maintain form because you're feeling the burn from having to keep going. It's not always pretty looking and my focus has to be on point as much as possible.
One of the keys that really makes these workouts test your endurance is how you breathe. As you get into later rounds, controlling the breathing can become a challenge and might slow down the pace a bit so you can stay efficient and not every exercise will have the same breathing patterns. Sometimes because of lactic acid build up like in the shoulders, legs or even your grip cause you got to hold on the entire time, you may have to take a step back or two (even by an inch or so) towards the anchor point to reduce a bit of the stress but still have the energy to keep fighting. It is a lung strengthener that's for sure but a thing to remember is to keep your breathing under control as best as you can and be able to "relax" so to speak as you move through one exercise after another.
When I say "relax", I don't mean to just let yourself be loose and just flop around, you still have to engage muscles but in a state like the breathing where the movements and patterns become automatic and your mind prevents the muscles from fatiguing quickly. When you're sweating hard and the band becomes slippery at times, we can't completely prevent things from sliding and having to readjust, but we can utilize what is possible, adapt quick and keep on going. Those 15 seconds of rest isn't about stopping to catch a couple breaths, it's really to take a small window to move into position for the next exercise.
The early days of working the band and doing Intervals, it was to get the timing down and learn how work with what I can do and rest for equal amounts of time or even longer. As time went on and I got more conditioned, I would add rounds, add more time, lessen the rest and test my abilities. Workouts at times last 10 minutes, 15, 20 and so on and would see the intervals that wrestlers would use and work around that. Once I can do the 45/15 protocol for a half hour, that was my sweet spot. 45 x 5 equals 225 seconds of work, multiply that by 6 and you get a total of 22 1/2 minutes of work and less than 8 minutes of rest total. That's pretty brutal and if you believe that's easy peasy or some bullshit, you haven't learned the meaning of hard work. It's pushing limits of your capabilities and not just your lung capacity, but your mental toughness, adapting to fatigue and strengthening your will to keep going. I would love to train with somebody with these bands and see how they handle a workout like this.
What am I getting out of it? Like I said, it's a sweet spot for me but also because I'm not counting reps, I'm building the capacity to keep things flowing as best as possible even when that burn comes into play. Reps can go as high as 50 in some cases but I don't know for sure, I just keep going LOL. I like finding out what I'm capable of and seeing what is possible when fatigue sets in and aspects of my mind and body want to quit. These workouts always feel different every time. I believe in having gas in the tank when I'm done. The funny thing is, despite having anything left in the tank, the burn and build up always hits differently, sometimes early on, other times towards the end but it never reveals itself until it smacks you in the face. It teaches you to expect the unexpected and to not panic when it starts getting really tough. At times, I'll think of Bud Jeffries in my head telling me I got this or thinking of a wrestler who makes workouts like this normal for them and I'm fighting to stay alive and they cheer me on.
Do I ever get sore from these workouts? Believe it or not, no. It doesn't mean I didn't work hard enough, these are tough as shit but because of how I apply certain things; like pacing, breathing and quick adjustments, my body is able to recover very well when in most cases for many, they would need a day or two just to feel whole again but for me, I bounce back pretty fast and can do circuits or decks of cards the next day and be fine. My conditioning is at it's peak at the moment. Nowhere near the level of a pro athlete or even a well conditioned wrestler, but for someone who trains and works on his health and well being, I'm in pretty damn good shape and feel incredible. This is the type of training I like where I can push myself without losing ground and making other tasks seem easier. Hiking is not a problem for me, if someone needs help with moving into a place, I have the stamina and strength to go as long as needed, chopping firewood? Fun as hell to do.
Keep being amazingly awesome and head on over to Dopamineo.com to get your bands. Use my code POWERANDMIGHT to get an added discount on your order(s) which can be great for deals that are already added for bundles and military discounts. Conditioning is your greatest asset, don't neglect it.
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